Chapter 68: Barbarian Hero (1)

Translator: RaidenTL

Chapter 68: Barbarian Hero (1)

After absorbing ten marbles, Riakis unleashed the instant-kill ability Evil Hiatus. If you didn't escape it in time, no matter how hard you worked to level up your character, they would die. In the game, the amount of time you had was forty-five minutes. And one key feature was that no matter what your location was when the effect activated, you were dragged to the center regardless.

Boom!

Before I could even adjust to the darkness in front of me, I felt the sensation of my entire body being pulled by an unseen force.

"Bjorn...! What...is...this...?!" For some reason, I heard Missha's voice at half-speed.

So I spoke at double speed. "Don't worry, we won't die right away."

"What... does that..." Missha shouted slowly, but her sentence was left incomplete.

For a moment, there was total silence, as if my sense of hearing itself had been lost. Of course, it didn't last long.

[All characters within the affected radius will be moved to the Center of Evil.]

When I opened my eyes, there was light.

"Bjorn!" I could also hear normally again, and besides Missha, there were many people in my line of sight muttering.

"Where am I...?"

"W-What the hell! I was clearly running away!"

It was a decent gathering of two hundred adventurers. I checked behind Missha, who was clinging to me with an anxious look on her face. Those bearing the Dzarwi clan's emblem were quickly gathering together in formation.

Their numbers have already dwindled this much from the original fifty...?

There were a little over twenty people. There had been eleven deaths during the three hours of confrontation with Riakis, but even more manpower had been lost in less than five minutes. What the hell had happened in that brief moment? Well, it wasn't hard to guess.

"Hey! If you know what's happening—"

"Shut up, you scum," an angry voice erupted at an adventurer's attempt to ask a question. "Because of scumbags like you... Do you know how many people have died?! If you come any closer, I will attack you immediately!"

In reality, the Dzarwi clan had banded together and were on high alert to keep anyone from approaching them.

At this, the adventurers were perplexed. "W-Why is this our fault?"

"If you hadn't taken our equipment in the first place, this wouldn't have happened!"

"I heard that large clans swear to the guild and the royal family that they will fulfill their duties in emergency situations. We can discuss right and wrong later, but for now, we must all gather our strength—"

"P-Please let me in! I didn't even participate in that riot in the first place! If you ask me to pay more for protection, I'll pay..."

Unaware of the situation they'd ended up in, the adventurers all shouted different things. They probably knew that getting abandoned by these guys would mean having no chance of survival.

But, uh-oh. The will of the Dzarwi clan was strong. "Be thankful that I haven't killed you yet, you piece of trash."

"W-what kind of selfishness is this?! What, do you mean to tell us to die?!"

"You heard me right."

"...What? You bastards! Do you think we'll just sit here and take this?" The man at the forefront was the one who had caused the riot in the first place. A lot of adventurers sympathized with Jack Fletcher's cry, but the clan just laughed in their faces.

"And what are you going to do?"

"Well, we'll join forces to—"

"I'm warning you now: don't expect us to be jerked around like before. If we wanted to, we could burn trash like you on the spot."

This wasn't an unsubstantiated bluff. The situation had changed from earlier. The Dzarwi had regrouped into a proper, dense formation, in contrast to their dispersed formation while confronting Riakis. From the looks of it, they were ready to cast magic at any time.

It was then that the adventurers realized the situation they were in. "God damn it!"

"You think we're going to die without you?"

A human man who appeared to be about 5'2" at the front of the crowd opened his mouth. "I know about this ability."

"You do?"

"N-Not the details. But if we don't get out of here in time, we'll all die. It was written in an ancient book."

"...Is that true?" When Jack gave him a suspicious look, a woman stepped forward in the shy man's place.

"I can swear it!" she shouted.

Jack stared at her. "An elf?"

"I've been teaming up with this guy for over a year, and I've been through a lot of incredible things with him. This man is mysterious. He really knows everything. I do not doubt that his words will save us."

Jack's expression shifted. "If it's the words of an elf... they're worth listening to. Look, how do we get out of this place?"

"There's not much of a strategy to it! I've heard you can escape if you go straight for about three miles in any direction..."

‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠

Surprisingly, what the human man said was true. The problem was that the moment you left this area where there was light, clones of Riakis emerged from the darkness.

"I-I heard there will be monsters, but if we all work together, I'm sure we can do it!"

"Hmm, there is definitely merit to that," Jack mused.

Bullshit. If it were that easy, the clan guys would have run in headfirst instead of having such a serious discussion amongst themselves with such sober expressions on their faces.

"Bjorn, what arrre you going to do?"

"What?"

"If an elf is willing to swearrr it, then that person must have something special."

Hmm, really? He just looks like an asshole to me...

"Don't be swayed by things like that, and hold steady," I told Missha.

"Okay!"

Anyway, things progressed quickly after that. When Jack made a decision and started agitating the crowd again, public opinion slowly shifted. "Even with the guarantee of the elf, the man's words could be false. However! Rather than sit here and await death, I'd put my faith in him!"

"Yeah, it's either die here or die in there!"

"I don't think they're going to help us anyway, so do we have any other options?"

"There are so many of us, so I'm sure something will happen!"

"But, no matter how I look at it, I don't think it will be easy..."

There were initially many skeptics, but as people gathered, the fear of being left behind grew.

"I will ask you one last time!" Jack called. "If anyone wants to join us, step forward now!"

"And what are you going to do?"

"Well, we'll join forces to—"

"I'm warning you now: don't expect us to be jerked around like before. If we wanted to, we could burn trash like you on the spot."

This wasn't an unsubstantiated bluff. The situation had changed from earlier. The Dzarwi had regrouped into a proper, dense formation, in contrast to their dispersed formation while confronting Riakis. From the looks of it, they were ready to cast magic at any time.

It was then that the adventurers realized the situation they were in. "God damn it!"

"You think we're going to die without you?"

A human man who appeared to be about 5'2" at the front of the crowd opened his mouth. "I know about this ability."

"You do?"

"N-Not the details. But if we don't get out of here in time, we'll all die. It was written in an ancient book."

"...Is that true?" When Jack gave him a suspicious look, a woman stepped forward in the shy man's place.

"I can swear it!" she shouted.

Jack stared at her. "An elf?"

"I've been teaming up with this guy for over a year, and I've been through a lot of incredible things with him. This man is mysterious. He really knows everything. I do not doubt that his words will save us."

Jack's expression shifted. "If it's the words of an elf... they're worth listening to. Look, how do we get out of this place?"

"There's not much of a strategy to it! I've heard you can escape if you go straight for about three miles in any direction..."

Surprisingly, what the human man said was true. The problem was that the moment you left this area where there was light, clones of Riakis emerged from the darkness.

"I-I heard there will be monsters, but if we all work together, I'm sure we can do it!"

"Hmm, there is definitely merit to that," Jack mused.

Bullshit. If it were that easy, the clan guys would have run in headfirst instead of having such a serious discussion amongst themselves with such sober expressions on their faces.

"Bjorn, what arrre you going to do?"

"What?"

"If an elf is willing to swearrr it, then that person must have something special."

Hmm, really? He just looks like an asshole to me...

"Don't be swayed by things like that, and hold steady," I told Missha.

"Okay!"

Anyway, things progressed quickly after that. When Jack made a decision and started agitating the crowd again, public opinion slowly shifted. "Even with the guarantee of the elf, the man's words could be false. However! Rather than sit here and await death, I'd put my faith in him!"

"Yeah, it's either die here or die in there!"

"I don't think they're going to help us anyway, so do we have any other options?"

"There are so many of us, so I'm sure something will happen!"

"But, no matter how I look at it, I don't think it will be easy..."

There were initially many skeptics, but as people gathered, the fear of being left behind grew.

"I will ask you one last time!" Jack called. "If anyone wants to join us, step forward now!"

More than one hundred adventurers gathered together. The number of people remaining was about forty, including me and Missha.

Jack surveyed the crowd, spotted me, and started talking. "Hey, was your name Biagron, son of Yandere?"

"...It's Bjorn, son of Yandel."

"Hmm, was it? Anyway, are you not joining us?"

Why are you bothering me again? Isn't it obvious, considering I'm standing here?

I responded by shrugging my shoulders.

"Stupid, just like a barbarian. You'll regret this."

The fuck? And what was that? Why add that shit at the end when all he had to do was go his own way? I didn't understand this mindset, but I always dished out what I took, so I gave him some advice. "The dying scumbag has spoken. Quit your rambling and just jump into your grave. That would be better for humanity and the planet as a whole."

"W-What?"

"You want to fight me? Then come at me. I'll smash in that empty head of yours." When I strode forward with my mace, the scoundrel quickly turned his head, even though there were hundreds of adventurers behind him. I heard him muttering to himself as he left. "Jeez, I was saying that to help him..."

Then he raised his voice and addressed the others. "It seems there is no one else joining us, so let's go! We can't afford to waste more time here!"

Despite the hiccup, more than half of the people disappeared into the darkness. No, something like that would be more accurately described as willingly walking into danger.

Anyway, once they left, Missha leaned into me and whispered, "Bjorn, what arrre we going to do?"

"Why do you always ask me that?"

"That's because... everything you say is right. I trrrust you."

"I see."

Thanks for that, but Missha was wrong. My choices were not right. How could a mere human know that? I just picked the option that seemed the most likely to succeed at the moment the problem occurred. So, in that spirit...

Step.

I walked toward the Dzarwi clan, who were in the middle of a discussion.

By this point, they should also be aware of just how fucked they are.

It was finally time to take a gamble I had judged would have the highest success rate, based on various factors.

As I approached, the clan stopped me. "Stop, Barbarian. Come closer and—"

Coincidentally, the one shouting was someone familiar to us.

"B-Brotherrr..."

"Half-wit? Why are you..."

A sudden reunion. It was clear that there would be no touching sibling reconciliation, so I smirked and pointed between the two of them. "Long time no see."

"...What? Long time no see?" Missha's older brother, Taylon, frowned.

Right. We were not that close. So, while he was distracted, I immediately got to the point. "So, did the Orc Hero essence show up yet?"

"Well, we were lucky—"

Oh, so you were lucky.

"Wait, how did you know that?"

As Taylon stared at me with horror in his eyes, I smiled. My gamble had been successful, at least halfway.

***

More than one hundred adventurers gathered together. The number of people remaining was about forty, including me and Missha.

Jack surveyed the crowd, spotted me, and started talking. "Hey, was your name Biagron, son of Yandere?"

"...It's Bjorn, son of Yandel."

"Hmm, was it? Anyway, are you not joining us?"

Why are you bothering me again? Isn't it obvious, considering I'm standing here?

I responded by shrugging my shoulders.

"Stupid, just like a barbarian. You'll regret this."

The fuck? And what was that? Why add that shit at the end when all he had to do was go his own way? I didn't understand this mindset, but I always dished out what I took, so I gave him some advice. "The dying scumbag has spoken. Quit your rambling and just jump into your grave. That would be better for humanity and the planet as a whole."

"W-What?"

"You want to fight me? Then come at me. I'll smash in that empty head of yours." When I strode forward with my mace, the scoundrel quickly turned his head, even though there were hundreds of adventurers behind him. I heard him muttering to himself as he left. "Jeez, I was saying that to help him..."

Then he raised his voice and addressed the others. "It seems there is no one else joining us, so let's go! We can't afford to waste more time here!"

Despite the hiccup, more than half of the people disappeared into the darkness. No, something like that would be more accurately described as willingly walking into danger.

Anyway, once they left, Missha leaned into me and whispered, "Bjorn, what arrre we going to do?"

"Why do you always ask me that?"

"That's because... everything you say is right. I trrrust you."

"I see."

Thanks for that, but Missha was wrong. My choices were not right. How could a mere human know that? I just picked the option that seemed the most likely to succeed at the moment the problem occurred. So, in that spirit...

Step.

I walked toward the Dzarwi clan, who were in the middle of a discussion.

By this point, they should also be aware of just how fucked they are.

It was finally time to take a gamble I had judged would have the highest success rate, based on various factors.

As I approached, the clan stopped me. "Stop, Barbarian. Come closer and—"

Coincidentally, the one shouting was someone familiar to us.

"B-Brotherrr..."

"Half-wit? Why are you..."

A sudden reunion. It was clear that there would be no touching sibling reconciliation, so I smirked and pointed between the two of them. "Long time no see."

"...What? Long time no see?" Missha's older brother, Taylon, frowned.

Right. We were not that close. So, while he was distracted, I immediately got to the point. "So, did the Orc Hero essence show up yet?"

"Well, we were lucky—"

Oh, so you were lucky.

"Wait, how did you know that?"

As Taylon stared at me with horror in his eyes, I smiled. My gamble had been successful, at least halfway.

***

Iraj McGrain, the vice captain of the Dzarwi clan, was currently thinking, We're fucked.

There had been a total of twenty-seven deaths, a number equivalent to 20 percent of the Dzarwi's total manpower. He had no idea how long it would take to recover those numbers.

Well, there is no guarantee that we will return alive, either.

He opened his eyes and looked at the faces of the members around him. A total of twenty-three clan members had survived. Looking just at the numbers, you would say that about half of the troops were alive, but in reality, that wasn't the case.

"What exactly is our current manpower?" he asked his lieutenant.

The report he received was delivered in a miserable tone. "Three priests, six wizards, twelve long-range supports... and two melee fighters."

It had to be. "Only two melee warriors..."

"Unbalanced" was not a strong enough word to describe the current distribution of their group. When the riot broke out, the unsupported warriors had been nearly annihilated.

"It's still not all bad," the lieutenant added. "If it weren't for your judgment, we wouldn't have had time to reorganize like this—"

"That's something you'll only know for sure once we return alive." McGrain steadied his breathing. As soon as he had judged that it would be impossible to put an end to the riot, he had issued an order to let Riakis absorb the dark sphere. As a result, they were able to reduce the damage to their numbers and buy time.

Yeah, time... we only bought time.

"Look, Sir McGrain! What will you do now? You won't be giving up, will you?"

"I'm thinking."

"Then you should think quickly. If you've studied Lord of Chaos Riakis even a little bit, you'll know we don't have much time left."

At the wizard's sharp tone, McGrain sighed.

"May the blessing of the twilight star be with you..." The priest who was praying while drawing the holy cross in the air was better, but it was clear that if McGrain got on their bad side, he would pay for it even if he managed to get out of there alive.

Think, how can I get out of here alive with as many people as possible?

McGrain deliberated and deliberated. What was the best thing he could do in his current situation?

"Sir, the adventurers are forming a group. It seems like they are trying to get out of this place on their own."

"That's the first bit of good news in a while. Leave them," ordered McGrain.

"Sorry?"

"They'll act as bait." Deciding to thoroughly exploit any advantages he was given, he gave much thought to the best escape route to use, how to divide up his troops while they were moving, and what formation would be most effective. There was no concrete answer. "As ordered, I'll make sure everyone knows the formation when we move. We can go at any time."

For now, he had done as much as he could, but even assuming luck was with them, at least half of them would die. The absence of warriors was too damning. Two people couldn't properly pave the way for their group, and what was more, they were a swordsman and spearman, as in, professional defense warriors. In other words, there was no adventurer in the sentry position.

At this incredibly crucial moment, we'll have to pave the way with just these two men.

Things would have been a lot better if there had been even just one proper adventurer in the sentry position...

"Sir, the adventurers have left."

"Quick, make a decision!"

As the clan members looked at him, McGrain squeezed his eyes shut.

"The number that left was over one hundred," the wizard pressed. "Unless we move while they're attracting even the slightest bit of the monster's attention—"

"I know." There was no time. A decision had to be made fast. McGrain ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠finally opened his mouth, which he had shut.

"That's why I told you, I'll clear the way!" a barbarian shouted. It was as if he knew exactly what McGrain was worried about, concerns that no one else was aware of.

"Hey, who is that fellow over there?" McGrain asked his lieutenant, almost entranced.

"I heard a bit of their conversation; it sounds like he's a teammate of Karlstein's younger sister. You don't need to worry about—"

"That's for me to decide, so answer me."

After a beat, the lieutenant replied. "I don't know how that man has figured out we have it... But he is asking for the essence of an Orc Hero."

"The essence of an Orc Hero?"

‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠

"Yes. He said he could pave the way with just that."

After activating one of his abilities, Survival Instinct, McGrain looked at the barbarian again. "It's the first time I've ever seen someone shine so brightly," he murmured.

The ability that had gotten him out of numerous crises was speaking, and it was saying that this man was worth listening to.

Iraj McGrain, the vice captain of the Dzarwi clan, was currently thinking, We're fucked.

There had been a total of twenty-seven deaths, a number equivalent to 20 percent of the Dzarwi's total manpower. He had no idea how long it would take to recover those numbers.

Well, there is no guarantee that we will return alive, either.

He opened his eyes and looked at the faces of the members around him. A total of twenty-three clan members had survived. Looking just at the numbers, you would say that about half of the troops were alive, but in reality, that wasn't the case.

"What exactly is our current manpower?" he asked his lieutenant.

The report he received was delivered in a miserable tone. "Three priests, six wizards, twelve long-range supports... and two melee fighters."

It had to be. "Only two melee warriors..."

"Unbalanced" was not a strong enough word to describe the current distribution of their group. When the riot broke out, the unsupported warriors had been nearly annihilated.

"It's still not all bad," the lieutenant added. "If it weren't for your judgment, we wouldn't have had time to reorganize like this—"

"That's something you'll only know for sure once we return alive." McGrain steadied his breathing. As soon as he had judged that it would be impossible to put an end to the riot, he had issued an order to let Riakis absorb the dark sphere. As a result, they were able to reduce the damage to their numbers and buy time.

Yeah, time... we only bought time.

"Look, Sir McGrain! What will you do now? You won't be giving up, will you?"

"I'm thinking."

"Then you should think quickly. If you've studied Lord of Chaos Riakis even a little bit, you'll know we don't have much time left."

At the wizard's sharp tone, McGrain sighed.

"May the blessing of the twilight star be with you..." The priest who was praying while drawing the holy cross in the air was better, but it was clear that if McGrain got on their bad side, he would pay for it even if he managed to get out of there alive.

Think, how can I get out of here alive with as many people as possible?

McGrain deliberated and deliberated. What was the best thing he could do in his current situation?

"Sir, the adventurers are forming a group. It seems like they are trying to get out of this place on their own."

"That's the first bit of good news in a while. Leave them," ordered McGrain.

"Sorry?"

"They'll act as bait." Deciding to thoroughly exploit any advantages he was given, he gave much thought to the best escape route to use, how to divide up his troops while they were moving, and what formation would be most effective. There was no concrete answer. "As ordered, I'll make sure everyone knows the formation when we move. We can go at any time."

For now, he had done as much as he could, but even assuming luck was with them, at least half of them would die. The absence of warriors was too damning. Two people couldn't properly pave the way for their group, and what was more, they were a swordsman and spearman, as in, professional defense warriors. In other words, there was no adventurer in the sentry position.

At this incredibly crucial moment, we'll have to pave the way with just these two men.

Things would have been a lot better if there had been even just one proper adventurer in the sentry position...

"Sir, the adventurers have left."

"Quick, make a decision!"

As the clan members looked at him, McGrain squeezed ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠his eyes shut.

"The number that left was over one hundred," the wizard pressed. "Unless we move while they're attracting even the slightest bit of the monster's attention—"

"I know." There was no time. A decision had to be made fast. McGrain finally opened his mouth, which he had shut.

"That's why I told you, I'll clear the way!" a barbarian shouted. It was as if he knew exactly what McGrain was worried about, concerns that no one else was aware of.

"Hey, who is that fellow over there?" McGrain asked his lieutenant, almost entranced.

"I heard a bit of their conversation; it sounds like he's a teammate of Karlstein's younger sister. You don't need to worry about—"

"That's for me to decide, so answer me."

After a beat, the lieutenant replied. "I don't know how that man has figured out we have it... But he is asking for the essence of an Orc Hero."

"The essence of an Orc Hero?"

"Yes. He said he could pave the way with just that."

After activating one of his abilities, Survival Instinct, McGrain looked at the barbarian again. "It's the first time I've ever seen someone shine so brightly," he murmured.

The ability that had gotten him out of numerous crises was speaking, and it was saying that this man was worth listening to.